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Maybe it would help if I wrote down what my objectives are. Obviously I do want to lose weight - fitting better into the Gi I bought yesterday would be a good start. But let's just say that will be a very long term thing, to get down even to just an amount considered healthy. Patience is going to be a prerequisite.

I have no aspirations to be a "top athlete" of any sort...closer to the "walk up 80 steps" Dave suggested than running up any number of them. (even 30 would be an improvement). Or a two mile walk over flat terrain without much stress. More immediate goals would be "flexible enough to sit seiza properly", "able to do the forward rolls across the mat during warm-up" and to get through said warm-up without being breathless (noticing a change there already). Overall, I want to be a healthier and more disciplined person, not a gym jockey.

Michael H, the pool running sounds like a good place to start. Michael V, the foam rolling looks really interesting, I will look more into it. Janet, could you point at some reference for the sort of exercises you do? Alberto, the walking and the weights sound fine but I wouldn't last 5 minutes jogging yet, unless it was in the pool like Michael suggested.

Meanwhile, today's practice was much better. Still a little tight and sore going in, but I could do the rolls and the backfalls without aggravating anything, long as I did them more slowly. So feeling much more optimistic.

Jamie, running in the pool will certainly get you huffing and puffing. It can be as intense as you desire, but it will take the stress off the joints due to the very, very low impact. One thing to remember though is to stay hydrated. You can get badly dehydrated in a pool, whether swimming or running or whatever. Doing something daily is a good start and I applaud you for wanting to make the change. At this stage you might want to look into qi gong exercises that focus on improving health, flexibility and attitude. Good luck with your journey!

Sounds like DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) is the issue - work in a range or volume that you're not accustomed to will cause DOMS, even in elite athletes.
solution? persistence. keep at it. for physical fitness, presently if "i'm in shape, round is a shape" is a valid descriptor, walking for an hour a day - a brisk walk, that is, will cause weight loss, increase cardiovascular fitness (gently), and solve many back problems. A few minutes stretching after the walk will prevent stiffening up.
W